Duchesse De Bourgogne | Brouwerij Verhaeghe

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After a long search through the lambic field, i found the beer for me.
This is a sour beer!

A: off-white frothy head that leaves plenty of lacing on the glass. Ruby red with a hint of brown.

S: You know it when you smell it. Sweet but surprising and not exactly definable. I get grapefruit, but not in the same way as a citrusy hop, its more the mash at play here.

T: my dad hates this and all guezes, but he states it correctly "soak a bag of sour gummy worms" I LOVE GUMMY WORMS. Though that phrase doesnt capture the complexities of citrus, oak, barley and the souring mash; it does explain it all except the artificial chemical flavor of a gummy worm - not present in this treat.

M: The pockets get tingly but again totally unlike that of a double IPA. Fizzy slightly, but smooth on the palate.

O: Anytime I see this beer, i get it. Ive paid too much for it, but thats the cost of mixing two batches together and aging and importing and the rarity, and on and on and on. Great Stuff.

Beautiful beer. Deep ruby red (in the light) pour, thick pillowy, slightly off-white head that lasts forever. Intense lacing down the entire glass. Sticky. The nose is wonderful. Funky vinous notes with sweet fruit, and the tartness comes out in the aroma.

Nice soft and smooth mouthfeel - like silk in your mouth. Citrusy, with ripe cherry fruits, acidic, very tart and sour. Some funk at the onset. Finishes sweet with a metallic note. Ends dry and leaves the palate without any bitterness or lingering traces. Mouth salivate and puckers, waiting that next drink. So much going on in this one it's hard to describe...

Overall, a near perfect flanders. I can't give it a perfect 5 because that belongs to Consecration.

Appearance: This lady pours ruby, almost burgundy. A royal ale brewed in honor of Mary of Burgundy. She almost looks like Cabarnet Sauvignon red wine. Reddish-brown body with a one finger beige head. Bubbly and sparkling with carbonation. Nice and Hazy.

Smell: Very powerful aromas of yeasty wild bacteria. Light bittersweet chocolate. Secondary notes of malty caramel. You can smell the sour notes and the fruitiness but nothing prepares me for the rush of flavor that is about to coat my tongue.

Taste: This is simply one of the most unique and flavorful tasting beers I have ever had. I taste Sweet grapes, slightly oaky almost corky plum wine, tart cherry. Vinegar. Spicy and sour citric fruitiness. I especially detect orange and guava. Some graininess and an oaky chocolate caramel finish. The finish is long and enjoyable. The sour bretts and fruit flavors and roasted malts all play on my tongue. There is a slight vinous alcohol presence. The hops are herbal and spicy.

Mouthfeel: Light to medium. There is some sugar. Duchesse doesn't dissolve but rather swishes around like a wine. Carbonation isn't too heavy on the mouth. It's all natural oak aging. Very light acidity. Nice overall balance of yeasts, roasted malts and specialty bittering hops.

Overall: The best I've had on the Flanders category. Also a very drinkable sour beer. Her sourness doesn't overpower the complex malts and other elements of the Belgian yeasts as well as the complex multi barrel aging process. This beer is easy to find and isn't too expensive for it's high quality.

Only problem I can find with this burgundy beauty is so noble, dignified and vinous it might destroy the wine industry if it caught on.

Poured into a snifter. Very dark red color, almost black. Nice head, 1/4" - 1/2", which stays around nicely.

Smells fruity like a champagin. Smells a bit tart and dry.

Taste is very pleasant. Very fruity, grapes. Good, strong carbonation. Nice and light.

Leaves the pallet quickly without any aftertaste, which I like.

I try not throw out a high score without justification, but I don't know how this beer can be improved for what it is. I find the look, lightness, and taste spot on. Not a beer I would drink all night, but used in place of a dessert wine or a sweet treat, look no further.

Pours a lucid light cola color with a 1.5 finger head - settling into a ring of foam on the inside of the glass

Smell is a very well projected and pungent blend of belgian yeast, malts, and figs

Mouthfeel is surprisingly effervescent for what I see the style to be, but in a way that only serves as a sparkling platform upon which to place the vortex of flavors in the palate remains fresh and yet weighty enough from late summer into the late winter.

Taste consists of a veritable rush of dark fruit, cranberry and cherry with a hint of cola, wine, and oak in the tertiary flavors. Not as much fig as implied in the nose, but instead replaced with a dark and warm fruity freshness that's adequately tempered by the oak. This in writing looks seemingly paradoxical, and perhaps is, but only in the greatest way possible. A masterpiece. Ludicrously well balanced. Little bit besides myself, will be picking up more than a couple of these in the future.

A: This beer pours a dark red-tinted brown. After a vigorous pour, there is a tan head of one finger which rapidly disappears, leaving a rim of foam around the edge of the glass and no lacing.

S: The smell is tart and fruity. It reminds me of a gueuze but not nearly as acidic; much sweeter. There is also a little bit of funk and caramel malt.

T: Very sweet and fruity with a touch of caramel. There is green apple providing much of the fruit flavor and a little tartness and some other light berry flavors in the background. As it warms, I can taste a plum flavor.